On the fourteenth day, however, they reached the boundary of the territories of a very powerful tribe of Pondo blood, and here they halted while messengers were sent forward to the Pondo chief, saying that with him Sigwe had no quarrel, and asking for a safe-conduct for the army while passing through his lands.  On the third day these messengers returned, accompanied by an embassy from the Pondo chief, that after much talk, though to all appearance unwillingly, gave Sigwe the promise of safe-conduct upon condition that he made a present of ceremony of one ox to their ruler.  Now Sihamba noticed that while the envoys were talking, their eyes wandered all about, taking note of every thing, and especially of the number of the soldiers and of Suzanne, who sat beside Sigwe during the indaba, or council.

“These are no true men,” she thought to herself, and made a plan.  In the evening she visited the camp of the envoys who had heard already that she was a famous doctoress, and offered her services to them for payment should any of them chance to need the boon of her magic arts.  They laughed, answering that they wanted neither charms nor divinations, but that she should see a certain young man, a servant in their train, who was very sick with love and had bought philtres from every doctor in their country without avail, wherewith to soften the heart of a girl who would have nothing to do with him.  When Sihamba, without seeming to speak much of it, had drawn from them all that she wished to know of the story of this man and girl, and with it other information, though they won little enough from her, she took her leave, and so set her trap that at night when all were asleep the young man came to consult her in a place apart.

Now she looked at him and said at once, without suffering him to speak: 

“Let me see.  Your name is so-and-so, and you are in love with such a girl, who turns away from you;” and she went on to tell him things which he thought were known only to himself.

“Wonderful,” he said, “wonderful!  But say, lady doctoress, can you help me, for my heart is water because of this girl?”

“It is difficult,” she answered.  “Do you know that when you come to consult a wise woman you should keep your mind fixed upon the matter about which you would take counsel with her from the first moment that you set out to visit her until you stand in her presence?  Now this you have not done, for as you came you were thinking of other things; yes, you were thinking about the ambush which is to be set for these people in the pass yonder, and therefore I cannot see the girl’s heart clear, and do not quite know what medicine I should give you to soften it.”

“It is true, lady,” answered the stupid fellow, “that I was thinking about the ambush of which I have heard some talk, though I do not know who told you of it.”

“Who told me?  Why to my sight your thoughts are written on your face, yes, they ran before you and reached me as I heard your footsteps.  But now, think no more of that matter, which has nothing to do with you or me, think only of the girl, and go on thinking of her, and of her only, until you get back home, and give her the medicine—­that is if you wish it to work.”